I don't know about you guys, but there's nothing I hate more than being broke. And when I wake up each morning, only to hear the news reporting more home foreclosures (with the county I live in being fourth in the nation) and what seems to be an impending recession, it really makes me think twice about how I'm not only spending my money, but also how I'm going to come up with ways to try and save some of it. Yeah, that sure does make for a great mood to be in while sitting in gridlocked traffic...sipping on my $5 coffee, while my 15-mpg guzzler sucks down $3.50 per gallon of refreshment at idle!
Basically, I don't live within my means-making ends meet is more like just getting from one end to another without getting too deep in debt. A truly frugal individual would not commute daily with a 6-liter, 3/4-ton truck; he'd be behind the wheel of some cracker box hybrid. A truly frugal individual would not invest daily in ridiculously expensive coffee; he'd get up early enough to make his own at home. Furthermore, in an economy such as ours, it's highly unlikely that same frugal individual would invest his hard-earned money in a hobby such as owning a classic truck-something with little to no financial return at best. Well, people, I am NOT that person! I enjoy driving my gas-guzzling Silverado (and waving at tree-huggers as I do) almost as much as I do drinking my high-dollar four-shot lattes-but not nearly as much as I do tinkering with my old cars, trucks, and motorcycles. But herein lies my impending quandary: Can I continue enjoying all of the above, equally, and with the same monetary investment when times get as tough as they seem to be now? Hmmm...
To be honest, I've seriously considered trading in my big truck on a little economy job like a Prius, Aveo, or even a Yaris. Of course, no matter what make or model I choose, there's one thing it'd have to have: the darkest tinted windows possible! It wasn't that long ago that I attempted to reduce my commute expenses by driving a Geo Metro to and from work. But after a month of hearing comments like, "nice Tic Tac," or worse, glancing over at a good-looking female driving the Mercedes next to me, only to find her giggling out of control (I'm not that ugly), well, my conservative commuting was over! I've also tried the home-brewed coffee routine, but for whatever reason, it just never tastes like the stuff I get at the java joint down the street. Plus, I hate having to get up earlier just go through all that nonsense of cleaning out the filter and so forth. I call it convenience; others call it expensive laziness!
But, in the grand scheme of things, is it all worth it if in the end I have to sacrifice my other passion? Typically, I've sold off a number of my Harleys, either when bank accounts got thin or there was a need to fund something big (like a home repair...or a wedding). But when it comes to my four-wheeled endeavors, they've only been sold or traded for "other" cars or trucks. Fortunately, I avoided getting tangled up in that huge mortgage mess that many, many others in my area are now faced with. Unfortunately, however, I do have to deal with the higher price of gasoline, the everincreasing toll road fees, and simply put, the inflated cost of living period. Should I let that affect how much I get to enjoy either of my '53 Chevys, whether or not I build my '56 big-window, or even if I keep a newly acquired '66 Shovelhead? In reality, I say no...but as it's becoming clearer, maybe my reality isn't so real after all!
Obviously, my family comes first. Anything financially that has to do with them takes precedence over everything else-even my mortgage-so that's never a question. But, when the checking and savings start dipping into the red, I can finally start to see the benefit of having an economical commuter car and homemade coffee. Heck, I could almost consider brown-bagging my lunch if it means not having to jeopardize the fossil-fueled passions Big Brother would otherwise love to see become extinct.